Time flew by, and the weekend had arrived.

Under a thin blanket lay Hojo Shouko.

The air conditioner was set to a cool twenty degrees Celsius. She was dressed in lightweight Mickey Mouse pajamas, and the curtains were drawn, plunging the bedroom into dimness.

THUD. The door suddenly burst open.

"Hmm?" Hojo Shouko turned on her side, letting out a soft nasal hum. Her eyelids felt heavy, as reluctant to separate as university sweethearts, deeply in love, facing the parting of graduation season.

She saw Hojo Tetsuji standing at the door.

"Shouko, what are you dawdling for? It’s already the weekend. Get up!"

"Huh?"

Hojo Shouko rubbed her eyes and picked up her phone from the bedside table.

It was five in the morning, earlier than her usual study time.

"Brother, it’s only five o’clock."

"Time flows like water; five is as good as six, and six is as good as seven. With that in mind, it’ll soon be eight!"

Hojo Tetsuji, relying on his excellent rounding method, successfully made his ample free time seem like he was almost late.

He couldn’t wait to see Yoshikawa Sayuri and show her a completely different side of himself.

"Shouko, do you think this outfit will make Little Sayuri fall for me?"

Hojo Shouko glanced at him. His sunglasses were off, revealing bright, spirited eyes. His beard was shaved clean. Though his face shape was different from his younger days, Hojo Tetsuji now had a manly air about him.

"You look great, Brother. You’ll definitely charm Senior Sayuri."

"Haha."

With an excited expression, Hojo Tetsuji urged, "Hurry up and get out of bed. Don’t keep slacking off!"

With that, he turned and left the house, closing the door behind him.

"Alright."

Hojo Shouko weakly responded and flopped back onto her bed.

They had agreed to meet at eight in the morning.

It wasn’t that Shouko liked to sleep in; she had simply planned to get up at six. She intended to stick to her own schedule. Wrapping herself in the blanket, she fell back asleep.

Hojo Tetsuji was bursting with excitement. Outside, he incessantly did push-ups: one-handed, on a single fingertip, then moved on to lifting the refrigerator and the sofa.

After such exertions, Hojo Tetsuji suddenly wondered why Shouko hadn’t gotten up yet.

He ran to his sister’s bedroom again and urged, "Shouko, get up quickly!"

"Brother, do ten thousand more push-ups, and I’ll get up right away."

Hojo Shouko, without even opening her eyes, continued to sleep on her side.

Hojo Tetsuji turned, left the room, and resumed his push-ups.

As he did them, he lost count and once again opened her door. "Shouko."

"Three thousand five hundred to go."

Hojo Shouko casually threw out a number to humor him. She knew he would get overly excited, so she didn’t want to reveal her plans too early.

It had been my oversight not to have warned Phoenix Academy’s Senior against spilling the beans about this. I’ll definitely be more careful next time, she thought.

She continued to sleep until six, then got up, locked her door, took off her pajamas, and changed into the clothes she planned to wear for the day: a light yellow spaghetti-strap floral dress.

"Hmm."

Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she twirled around. This outfit looks good, she decided, then turned and walked out the door.

Besides preparing breakfast for her family, she also had to make bento box lunches for Summer Flower, Aozawa-senpai, and the others.

Food from outside is never as nutritious or filling as home-cooked meals, was her firm belief.

「At the Morimoto Family.」

Aozawa changed into the short-sleeved shirt and shorts Phoenix Academy Maggie had bought for him. They were black with gold dragon patterns on both the top and bottom.

This outfit isn’t bad, he thought. I like dragon patterns; they feel mighty and imposing.

Morimoto Chiyoda, however, couldn’t help but feel it was all wrong.

To me, such an imposing dragon design doesn’t suit Aozawa at all, she thought. His face and build are better suited to a refreshing, sunny-boy look.

"You really shouldn’t wear that out; it doesn’t suit you."

"Chitose, jealousy isn’t a good look," Aozawa replied cheerily. He moved closer to her, patted his thigh, and said, "I think the gold dragon is quite imposing."

As he spoke, he tried to sneak his hand under her skirt, but Morimoto Chiyoda stopped him with one hand. She gave him a sidelong glance and said, "Trying to take advantage of me when you’re about to go out with other girls? Today, you’ll learn what jealousy feels like."

She then bit down on Aozawa’s cheek.

"OUCH! Chitose, what are you doing?"

Morimoto Chiyoda didn’t answer, biting down like a dog on a bone, refusing to let go.

After a moment, she released her grip. Looking at the bright red teeth marks on Aozawa’s cheek with a triumphant expression, she said, "Now you’ve been marked by me. Go to your gathering and let everyone see the love bite."

She licked her lips, her eyes gleaming with mischief.

Aozawa used his phone’s selfie mode to check his face. The bite mark was quite distinct. "Chitose, you bit me really hard just now."

"If I didn’t bite hard, how would the mark stay? You could easily wipe off a lipstick mark, couldn’t you?" Morimoto Chiyoda picked up some noodles from her bowl with her chopsticks and said with a smile, "I’m really looking forward to seeing you meet the young lady and the others."

"Chitose, you’re so mean," Aozawa complained.

"Heh heh."

Morimoto Chiyoda grew even more cheerful. Most of the time, she was the one looking out for Aozawa’s feelings. But when she wanted to tease him, she savored his embarrassment as if it were spiritual nourishment.

Now I can only hope Marvelous Resurgence can erase this mark on my face, Aozawa thought. Otherwise, if Maggie sees it, she’ll definitely get jealous again.

Morimoto Chiyoda finished her breakfast in high spirits and tossed the dishes to Aozawa to clean up.

She still had to head to the Metropolitan Police Department for work.

Although her title of Supervisory Director was largely nominal, her work with the special task force was her primary responsibility.

After returning from the United States, her workload had gradually increased. She had to monitor the research institute while also writing reports for her superiors. These reports involved analyzing whether yesterday’s destruction of the Eight Limbs God Sect was the work of a new Angel Envoy or Dio.

If it was Dio, what evidence is there? she pondered. All of this needed to be compiled into official documents.

Her busy work life meant her vacation this week was canceled again.

Damn it, I really want to retire early, Morimoto Chiyoda grumbled inwardly as she left home.

Aozawa tossed the bowls and chopsticks into the dishwasher and also left the house. He raised his hand, using his Marvelous Resurgence ability to erase the bite mark on his face.

He sighed with relief. It seems Marvelous Resurgence truly understands that any injury, no matter how small, is still an injury. After all, a bite mark left untreated would fade in about an hour. But I don’t have an hour before I meet Maggie and the others at the Silver Department Store.

「At seven fifty in the morning.」

A sunshade had already been set up at the entrance of the Silver Department Store. In this weather, playing the zither directly under the sun would likely cause the two performers to suffer heatstroke.

Hojo Shouko, ever considerate, had arrived early with Hojo Tetsuji to set up the area.

The zither was placed in position.

Phoenix Academy Maggie, Nomura True Wave, and Yoshikawa Sayuri walked over from the street corner.

Hojo Shouko stood up and went to greet them. "Phoenix Academy’s Senior, Yoshikawa Senpai, Nomura Senpai, thank you all for coming to help today."

"Hehe, no problem! It’s for a good cause," Yoshikawa Sayuri replied, her face beaming.

She had seen the news: the death toll in Washington D.C. had exceeded sixty thousand, and the number was still rising as the rubble was cleared.

"Didn’t Hojo-kun say he would participate? Why don’t I see him?" Yoshikawa Sayuri looked left and right but couldn’t find the familiar figure.

Phoenix Academy Maggie tapped her on the shoulder and pointed to the young man in front of them. "That’s Tetsuji."

Yoshikawa Sayuri looked at him. He had spiky hair and a tall figure. The short-sleeved shirt and knee-length shorts were a matching set, black with flame patterns, looking very cool. He was like a completely different person from the uncle-faced Hojo Tetsuji she remembered.

She waved her hand. "Maggie, please don’t joke like that, okay?"

"Little Sayuri, don’t you think he resembles the male lead from the manga?"

"Eh?"

Prompted by this, Yoshikawa Sayuri stared at Hojo Tetsuji, comparing his face with that of the manga protagonist. To her surprise, they were a perfect match.

"Are you really Hojo-kun?"

"Yeah." Hojo Tetsuji’s face turned slightly red, and he shyly touched the back of his head. "What do you think?"

"So handsome!" Yoshikawa Sayuri exclaimed, her face full of admiration.

Phoenix Academy Maggie teased, "Have you fallen for him?"

"Maybe I really have," Yoshikawa Sayuri answered cheerfully.

This playful remark made Hojo Tetsuji feel like spring had arrived. He laughed heartily. "Haha, I think manga artists should look more clean-cut. There’s no need for beards and sunglasses at all."

"That’s true. It’s a bit odd for a high school student to have a beard, no matter how you look at it."

"Haha." Hojo Tetsuji inwardly kicked himself; he should have shaved earlier. Wait, what if I confess now...? His eyes sparkled, but Phoenix Academy Maggie punched him, interrupting his train of thought.

His reluctance to take initiative is frustrating, and so is his constant assumption that he always has the upper hand, Maggie thought.

"Aozawa isn’t due here until eight. Next time, we might as well set the meeting time for seven fifty so he arrives earlier."

"Oh, right, what are we supposed to be doing?" Yoshikawa Sayuri only remembered to ask this after she had arrived.

Hojo Shouko handed her the donation box, placing it in Yoshikawa Sayuri’s hands. "Senior Sayuri, you just need to hold this box and greet passersby. Brother, Phoenix Academy’s Senior, Nomura Senpai, your task is to distribute flyers."

"I have no objections," Nomura True Wave spoke up, then pinched Phoenix Academy Maggie’s arm, smiling. "I just wonder if Maggie, with her delicate skin, can withstand the sun."

"I’ve applied sunscreen," Phoenix Academy Maggie replied.

Nomura True Wave’s eyes lit up. "No wonder it feels so smooth!" she said curiously. "Let me smell what kind of sunscreen you’re using."

"Don’t just go around smelling people’s hands," Phoenix Academy Maggie said, withdrawing her hand with a helpless expression.

Nomura True Wave chuckled. "Can’t help it, I like girls who smell nice."

Hojo Shouko glanced behind them. "Aozawa-senpai is here."

"Good morning~" Aozawa raised his hand in greeting, then glanced at Hojo Tetsuji. "Oh, what a surprise. You look exactly like the manga protagonist."

Before Hojo Tetsuji could reply, Nomura True Wave leaned in towards Aozawa, took a deep breath, and murmured, "MMM... This is the scent of a woman’s perfume. What brand is it?"

"Makoto, don’t do that." Phoenix Academy Maggie looked a bit upset and pulled Nomura True Wave back.

Aozawa realized everything was within Chitose’s calculations. No wonder she suddenly changed perfumes; this one was harder for the scent to disperse, he thought.

"Let’s start handing out flyers," Hojo Shouko said, breaking the somewhat tense silence.